Is a sans amp pedal still relevant for recording considering the quality of converters/preamps in modern interfaces and the quality of bass amp sims ( ex: neural dsp parallax etc..)?

The Sansamp is an all-analog device. A "high quality converter" in your interface means it will do a better job of capturing what you put in front of it. If what you put in front if it is basically a distortion pedal, the converters don't "replace" that pedal, they just faithfully record what it sounds like.

you can use a real amp
you can use an amp sim
you can use a stomp pedal from 1989 like the Sansamp

IMO, none of them will give you exactly what any of the others give you. The sound you prefer is what is truly relevant.

As I understand it, the SansAmp is starting to be "cool again" - as so often happens to older gear once it gets old enough. So what really matters here is if you like it. Personally, I think a modern amp sim plugin sounds "more like a real amp" than a pedal from the 80's. But a real amp sounds even 'more real' than the plugin! So what are your sonic goals? Maybe that pedal has a sound of its own, it's been on 1000s of records, etc etc

About sums it up.

Op, I use DI for clean, either through an amp > load box, or sometimes direct into a pre > outboard. Sometimes I'll finish the trip from load box to speaker, mic that and have two choices to mess with. That will basically cover most of my bass needs.

I have the Sansamp VTBass thing, and it does basically fake an amp when you run DI through it. It isn't the same as a real amp, but it helps. I think it sounds better than just DI. But if you really want to make legit, honest, live off the floor music -- you need to push a signal through an amp and mic a cab. Think RATM and music like that. If your idea of "band" is you in pajamas at the computer sipping tea, other options might be better.

Joeq is right though, there are plenty of modern choices for DI that will get you way more options than an old pedal. Guitar sims are popular (not with me), so why not the bass? I'm sure bass sims would give huge options.

Lots of choices depending on what you want as an end product.

Kinda depends if having some kind of 'analog purity' going in really matters (that's what SansAmp kinda markets itself as now in a world of digital amp sims and plugins).

But yeah, ultimately it should come down to sound of course. I've tried a few different flavors of SansAmp pedals over the years and they all have this kind of particular SansAmp-y sound that's hard to escape. If you like that sound, go for it, absolutely. I tried to like it, just couldn't get on with it, so I've gone with Line 6 stuff (first PODs, then on to Helix) over the last several years as I find it much easier to dial in the sounds I want.

I have to admit I like the analog aspect of it, since I'm generally an analog type of guy myself (most of my synths are analog) and I can see how that analog aspect can have some newfound fresh appeal in an area dominated by digital. But like I said, I just can't quite get the sounds I want out of them and I can't make that compromise.

Absolutely. I prefer the way it sits in a mix over amp sims. As a player, I also appreciate the more punchy response. I'll generally run a compressor in-line, usually a WA76. I personally use the Sansamp VT Bass Deluxe for this, but have gotten good results with the regular Bass Driver and the RBI as well.

For anything other than a writing demo, though, I'll mic a cab and take a clean DI as well. For metal, I'll also take a separate distortion track.

They're somewhat famous, and overpriced imo. You can get a neural dsp amp sim for $100. How can a pedal emulate an amp better than an amp sim? Unless you dig that sound.

why not?

I have one with the dip switches. I track it into an Apogee AD16. Sounds good to me.
I use a BASS pod for bass. Can't get away from it.

All that really matters is if it makes a sound you like, and gets you the results you're after, and doesn't hinder your workflow. Anything that does that is "relevant" for recording.

I've had a Tech21 SansAmp GT-2 for close to 30 years I think, and I'll bet it still gets used on 95% of the guitar sessions I record.

Personally I find the GT-2 to be a bit of a One Trick Pony...but man, it does that One Trick so much better than anything else I've tried! (Well, short of a real Marshall Plexi...)

I'm not a guitar player and I never record guitars, but I own a Sans Amp Para Driver DI and I use it from time to time to record synths, in order to add a touch of subtle overdrive (it can be also distort in a noticeable way, but I try to keep it subtle). That particular model lets you distort the middle range (and choose the middle frequency as well), decide the blend between dry and wet and eq the low and the highs...


I know you were probably asking for a more traditional use; but maybe you could use a Sans Amp for some stacked saturation/distortion, to "prepare" the signal before going into the final distortion / amp stage? I'm not a guitar player, so I don't any know better, but that's something I'd probably try. Maybe some guitar players can share their experience (if they tried doing so and it worked / didn't work well).

Hi Bob - GT-2 user myself. Just curious as to the go-to for you on the settings? I presume you're aiming for the Plexi combination, but wondering what you've found works for you?

Shows just how subjective it is .and how many variables to tone there are. I've had one about 20 years and stopped using it almost immediately . Every now and I plug it in and think "well may this time." Then after a few minutes of fiddling with it I think, "nope ; still not happening!"

Yeah, it's always "British" model, always "Classic" Mic, and usually "Hi Gain" Mode. And the "Low" and "High" knobs are almost always dialed back lower than the 1:00 position where those painted hash marks are.

I have never found a clean sound on that GT-2 that was at all useful...mostly because it's never as clean as a genuine amplifier, there's always some fizzy hair around every note.

Yep I still have a GT2 I've had for decades and I too do the same thing, pull it out once in a while but I end up just going back to my usual setup.

It does do the creamy Marshall thing very well but I just can't get the clean tones I want out of it. I lean towards a sparkly JC-120 tone when it comes to clean and it just can't do it. Though to be fair it's not designed to emulate that kind of clean sound, it does a decent Fender-ish clean but that's not what I seek.

Yeah, I wouldn't bother with it for cleans. That said, I'll say a few things in defense of SansAmp generally (not just GT2, but applies to it also):

1) At moderate-to-high amounts of gain, can be used in some successfully in some creative ways. Cobain used it as a preamp on In Utero. Love those tones! Tchad Blake reportedly used it on mixes as an efect

2) I got some good tones out of Behringer V-Amp back in the day, which had some horrible tones, but at least a few fairly good ones. Sansamp was the only thing that gave the better ones a run for the money at that price point.

3) I don't personally care for GT-2as a standalone, but what I do like and end up using costs way more, and involves more components, so Sansamp has a solid place in "low end theory" in terms of bang-for-the-buck.

I suppose nowadays the question would be whether something like a Boss Katana that is also relatively affordable makes more sense. To that I can only say: horses for courses. Use what you like and what works.

And trust your ears. If it sounds good, it is good.

There was a time where they gained some popularity off label for adding some grit to drums or vocal tracks.

But for guitars, I don't think they've ever really been a thing.

I've heard more than one record recently that's tracked all the guitars through the Joyo tech21 clones (American Sound etc). Still a place for analog amp sims if you like the sounds!

I know Geddy Lee used various SansAmp rack units as preamps in the latter years of Rush, but I much preferred the sound of the Ashly preamps he used for many years before that.

Thread Drift: I've seen the Ashly/API/BGW rig you speak of, but I wonder: Did he actually use that rig for recording, or just live performances?

I've used a SansAmp Bass driver quite a bit for tracking. I like the sound BUT make sure to also get a clean DI signal in parallel from it too. EQ choices made in tracking on the pedal can sometimes be too much and hard to fix in mixing.

I like the PSA. I hope Tech 21 will make a new rack version at some point.